Author: N. M. Swerdlow Publisher: Princeton University Press ISBN: 1400864860 Category : Science Languages : en Pages : 265
Book Description
In the second millennium b.c., Babylonian scribes assembled a vast collection of astrological omens, believed to be signs from the gods concerning the kingdom's political, military, and agricultural fortunes. The importance of these omens was such that from the eighth or seventh until the first century, the scribes observed the heavens nightly and recorded the dates and locations of ominous phenomena of the moon and planets in relation to stars and constellations. The observations were arranged in monthly reports along with notable events and prices of agricultural commodities, the object being to find correlations between phenomena in the heavens and conditions on earth. These collections of omens and observations form the first empirical science of antiquity and were the basis of the first mathematical science, astronomy. For it was discovered that planetary phenomena, although irregular and sometimes concealed by bad weather, recur in limited periods within cycles in which they are repeated on nearly the same dates and in nearly the same locations. N. M. Swerdlow's book is a study of the collection and observation of ominous celestial phenomena and of how intervals of time, locations by zodiacal sign, and cycles in which the phenomena recur were used to reduce them to purely arithmetical computation, thereby surmounting the greatest obstacle to observation, bad weather. The work marks a striking advance in our understanding of both the origin of scientific astronomy and the astrological divination through which the kingdoms of ancient Mesopotamia were governed. Originally published in 1998. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.
Author: Noel M. Swerdlow Publisher: Princeton University Press ISBN: 9780691011967 Category : Nature Languages : en Pages : 274
Book Description
Modern scholars have long struggled to understand the sophisticated workings of Babylonian astronomy and, in particular, how the scribe derived from observation the numerical parameters of their planetary theory in this book, N. M. Swerdlow offers a solution to that problem. He examines here the collection and observation of ominous celestial phenomena and of how intervals of time, locations by zodiacal sign, and cycles in which the phenomena recur were used to develop a purely arithmetical planetary theory by which the same ominous phenomena that were regularly observed were reduced to computation, thereby surmounting the single greatest obstacle to observation: bad weather.
Author: N. M. Swerdlow Publisher: ISBN: 9780691634470 Category : Science Languages : en Pages : 0
Book Description
In the second millennium b.c., Babylonian scribes assembled a vast collection of astrological omens, believed to be signs from the gods concerning the kingdom's political, military, and agricultural fortunes. The importance of these omens was such that from the eighth or seventh until the first century, the scribes observed the heavens nightly and recorded the dates and locations of ominous phenomena of the moon and planets in relation to stars and constellations. The observations were arranged in monthly reports along with notable events and prices of agricultural commodities, the object being to find correlations between phenomena in the heavens and conditions on earth. These collections of omens and observations form the first empirical science of antiquity and were the basis of the first mathematical science, astronomy. For it was discovered that planetary phenomena, although irregular and sometimes concealed by bad weather, recur in limited periods within cycles in which they are repeated on nearly the same dates and in nearly the same locations. N. M. Swerdlow's book is a study of the collection and observation of ominous celestial phenomena and of how intervals of time, locations by zodiacal sign, and cycles in which the phenomena recur were used to reduce them to purely arithmetical computation, thereby surmounting the greatest obstacle to observation, bad weather. The work marks a striking advance in our understanding of both the origin of scientific astronomy and the astrological divination through which the kingdoms of ancient Mesopotamia were governed. Originally published in 1998. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.
Author: Alan C. Bowen Publisher: BRILL ISBN: 9004400567 Category : History Languages : en Pages : 783
Book Description
In Hellenistic Astronomy: The Science in Its Contexts, renowned scholars address questions about what the ancient science of the heavens was and the numerous contexts in which it was pursued.
Author: Mathieu Ossendrijver Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media ISBN: 1461437822 Category : Mathematics Languages : en Pages : 636
Book Description
This book contains new translations and a new analysis of the procedure texts of Babylonian mathematical astronomy, the earliest known form of mathematical astronomy of the ancient world. The translations are based on a modern approach incorporating recent insights from Assyriology and translation science. The work contains updated and expanded interpretations of the astronomical algorithms and investigations of previously ignored linguistic, mathematical and other aspects of the procedure texts. Special attention is paid to issues of mathematical representation and over 100 photos of cuneiform tablets dating from 350-50 BCE are presented. In 2-3 years, the author intends to continue his study of Babylonian mathematical astronomy with a new publication which will contain new editions and reconstructions of approx. 250 tabular texts and a new philological, astronomical and mathematical analysis of these texts. Tabular texts are end products of Babylonian math astronomy, computed with algorithms that are formulated in the present volume, Procedure Texts.
Author: Lewis Spence Publisher: ISBN: Category : Assyro-Babylonian religion Languages : en Pages : 506
Book Description
A collection of Babylonian and Assyrian myths and legends, including various analogues of the biblical flood story and discussions of the history of Babylon and Assyria, and descriptions of various forms of Babylonian worship, Assyrian cults, and archaeological excavation of Babylonian and Assyrian sites.
Author: James Evans Publisher: Oxford University Press ISBN: 019987445X Category : Science Languages : en Pages : 495
Book Description
The History and Practice of Ancient Astronomy combines new scholarship with hands-on science to bring readers into direct contact with the work of ancient astronomers. While tracing ideas from ancient Babylon to sixteenth-century Europe, the book places its greatest emphasis on the Greek period, when astronomers developed the geometric and philosophical ideas that have determined the subsequent character of Western astronomy. The author approaches this history through the concrete details of ancient astronomical practice. Carefully organized and generously illustrated, the book can teach readers how to do real astronomy using the methods of ancient astronomers. For example, readers will learn to predict the next retrograde motion of Jupiter using either the arithmetical methods of the Babylonians or the geometric methods of Ptolemy. They will learn how to use an astrolabe and how to design sundials using Greek and Roman techniques. The book also contains supplementary exercises and patterns for making some working astronomical instruments, including an astrolabe and an equatorium. More than a presentation of astronomical methods, the book provides a critical look at the evidence used to reconstruct ancient astronomy. It includes extensive excerpts from ancient texts, meticulous documentation, and lively discussions of the role of astronomy in the various cultures. Accessible to a wide audience, this book will appeal to anyone interested in how our understanding of our place in the universe has changed and developed, from ancient times through the Renaissance.
Author: Kevin Hand Publisher: Princeton University Press ISBN: 0691227284 Category : Nature Languages : en Pages : 296
Book Description
Inside the epic quest to find life on the water-rich moons at the outer reaches of the solar system Where is the best place to find life beyond Earth? We often look to Mars as the most promising site in our solar system, but recent scientific missions have revealed that some of the most habitable real estate may actually lie farther away. Beneath the frozen crusts of several of the small, ice-covered moons of Jupiter and Saturn lurk vast oceans that may have existed for as long as Earth, and together may contain more than fifty times its total volume of liquid water. Could there be organisms living in their depths? Alien Oceans reveals the science behind the thrilling quest to find out. Kevin Peter Hand is one of today's leading NASA scientists, and his pioneering research has taken him on expeditions around the world. In this captivating account of scientific discovery, he brings together insights from planetary science, biology, and the adventures of scientists like himself to explain how we know that oceans exist within moons of the outer solar system, like Europa, Titan, and Enceladus. He shows how the exploration of Earth's oceans is informing our understanding of the potential habitability of these icy moons, and draws lessons from what we have learned about the origins of life on our own planet to consider how life could arise on these distant worlds. Alien Oceans describes what lies ahead in our search for life in our solar system and beyond, setting the stage for the transformative discoveries that may await us.
Author: Francesca Rochberg Publisher: BRILL ISBN: 9004183892 Category : Literary Collections Languages : en Pages : 469
Book Description
"In the Path of the Moon" offers a collection of essays concerning Babylonian celestial divination. It investigates various aspects of cuneiform celestial omens, horoscopes, and astronomy and their wide-ranging influences on later Hellenistic science and philosophy.
Author: Francesca Rochberg Publisher: American Philosophical Society ISBN: 9780871698810 Category : Foreign Language Study Languages : en Pages : 182
Book Description
Emerging for the first time in the 5th cent. B.C., horoscopes reflect the application of the idea and practice of celestial divination to the life of the individual. Whereas an omen focuses on a single astronomical phenomenon, the horoscope takes into account the positions of the moon, sun, and five planets at the moment of a birth. As such, Babylonian horoscopes presuppose the concept of the ecliptic and a methodology for obtaining the positions of heavenly bodies when they are not observable. This is the first complete edition of the extant cuneiform horoscopes -- with transcription and philological and astronomical commentary. This study offers a systematic description of the documents as a definable class of Babylonian astronomical/astrological texts.
Author: N. M. Swerdlow
Author: Noel M. Swerdlow
Author: N. M. Swerdlow
Author: Alan C. Bowen
Author: Mathieu Ossendrijver
Author: Lewis Spence
Author: James Evans
Author: Kevin Hand
Author: Francesca Rochberg
Author: Francesca Rochberg